Turkish Man: I'm Borat!

He's king of the Turkish castle.

Mahir Cagri, a 44-year-old cyber-celebrity hailing from Izmir, Turkey, sees more than a little something of himself in Sacha Baron Cohen's backward Kazakh alter ego, Borat.

In fact, Cagri sees enough of himself in the character that he is accusing Baron Cohen of drawing his inspiration for Borat directly from his personal Website. Now, the Turkish man is demanding an apology and seeking to cash in on a hefty cut of the earnings from the comedian's "great success" of a movie.

Cagri exploded onto the Internet scene back in 1999 with his unintentionally hilarious Website, ikissyou.org (now defunct). The site professed his love for many things, including travel, foreign languages and sex, and issued an open invitation to female travelers.

"Who is want to come TURKEY…I can invitate...She can stay my home..." he offered on the site, a version of which is still available for viewing at www.istanbul.tc/mahir/mahir/.

The site received millions of viewers and inspired countless parodies. In July 2005, CNET ranked it number two in its roundup of "Top 10 Web Fads," and in September 2005, it was awarded the more dubious honor of being among PC magazine's "25 Worst Websites."

Cagri alleges that Baron Cohen borrowed from images posted on his personal Website to develop the character of the hilarious foreign journalist with a penchant for bringing out America's dark side. Specifically, Cagri, a tall, lanky, mustachioed Turk, complains that Baron Cohen drew inspiration from photos of him playing the accordion, Ping-Pong and sunbathing in a skimpy bathing suit, among other activities as the basis for scenes from his hit comedy, Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan.

The 20th Century Fox film, which opened last Friday to rave reviews from critics, was a surprise number one at the box office, ringing up a stellar $26.4 million on only 837 screens and shattering Fahrenheit 9/11's two-year-old record for the highest grossing film playing on less than 1,000 screens. (Michael Moore's doc earned $23 million over its opening weekend back in June 2004.)

In a phone interview conducted Monday with the Associated Press shortly before he was due to fly to Istanbul to appear on a talk show, Cagri said he was considering legal action against Baron Cohen in addition to seeking some sort of "acknowledgement or an apology" for allegedly ripping him off.

"The world knows he is copying Mahir," the Turk, who's also a freelance reporter, told AP.  "I'm not saying this—the world is.  I have received so many emails from people in the United States who tell me he is imitating me."

No word whether Cagri has a prostitute for a sister, enjoys naked wrestling,or obsesses over Pamela Anderson—"Pam-ellla" as Borat calls her.

Besides an apology, Cagri wants the comic to stop allegedly profiting off his image as well.

"The bombshell is going to fall," he noted, adding that he's planning a trip to London on Tuesday where he's scheduled to meet with his manager and an attorney to discuss a potential lawsuit and talk to the British tabs to gin up public support on his behalf.  "[Cohen] is making money by using me."

Baron Cohen was unavailable for comment and has been mostly mum on the subject of the Kazakh talking head since unveiling him on his late-night cult comedy, The Ali G Show, on HBO back in 2003.  Instead, the performer's been on a publicity blitz in character as Borat, appearing last week alone on CNN, The Late Show with David Letterman and The Daily Show, among other outlets.

The comedian first came up with the rabidly anti-Semitic Borat in 2001 as part of his U.K. television show before coming to the U.S. and did provide some insight into the awkward journo's origins on the commentary track of Da Ali G Show DVD, stating that he was inspired by a guy he met on a trip to Russia.

"I can't remember his name—he was a doctor," Baron Cohen said.  "The moment I met him, I was totally crying.  He was a hysterically funny guy, albeit totally unintentionally."

While the entertainer basks in the glorious triumph that's his faux documentary, the offers are starting to pour in faster than you can say wa-wa-wi-wa.

Variety reports that Baron Cohen, who recently played a French Formula 1 driver in last summer's Will Farrell comedy, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, is attached to star in Dinner with Schmucks, a remake of the French film, Le Diner de Cons.  In the flick, he plays a guest who's such a pathetic idiot, he has a habit of wrecking the lives of everyone he meets.

Baron Cohen is also in talks with Universal about adapting another one of his Ali G characters, the gay Austrian TV correspodent, Bruno, to the big screen using real-life situations just as he did with Borat.  However, that film might be much harder to make given his increasing popularity and the loss of his anonymity.

Borat has been playing to sold-out crowds so far, thanks to huge word-of-mouth publicity. Fox plans to expand the comedy to theaters across the country over the coming weeks.